Self conception and achievements
The Council for the Artsl Berlin (Rat für die Künste Berlin) – its self-conception and achievements
The Council for the Arts Berllin is an independent, elected body that represents Berlin’s cultural sector. It is made up of 24 members, including cultural workers from well-known Berlin institutions as well as freelance artists. The Council for the Arts advises on current cultural issues, mediates between politics and cultural practice, and provides impetus for future developments – in the interests of culture and the people of Berlin. Its self-organisation enables it to react flexibly and diversely to new challenges.
Politicians and administrators see it as an important partner for the concerns of cultural institutions, cultural workers and the independent art scene. The members of the council shape the cultural future of the city on a daily basis. The Council does not see culture as a mere decorative accessory, but as an essential educational institution for the socialisation of society.
Since its founding in 1994, the Council for the Arts has launched numerous initiatives that have had a lasting impact on Berlin’s cultural landscape:
• Capital Cultural Fund / Hauptstadtkulturfonds
The Capital Cultural Fund has been supporting innovative, cross-regional and cross-genre art and cultural projects in Berlin since 1999. It enables independent artists and institutions to realise experimental and interdisciplinary projects that enrich the diversity of Berlin’s cultural landscape. The fund contributes to the further development of Berlin as an international cultural metropolis and supports projects that have an impact beyond the city.
• Berlin Project Fund for Cultural Education
Through the Berlin Project Fund for Cultural Education, the BerlinCouncil for the Artsl is committed to linking art, culture and education. The fund supports projects that give children, teenagers and young adults access to forms of artistic expression – regardless of their social or cultural background. Through cooperation between artists, cultural institutions and educational establishments, creative spaces are created that promote cultural participation and aesthetic education.
• City Tax
The city tax initiated by the Council for the Arts is a cultural tax that has been levied on overnight stays in Berlin hotels since 2014. Part of the revenue goes directly into promoting culture in the city, benefiting independent projects and cultural institutions in particular. The tax is an important building block in the sustainable funding of Berlin’s arts and cultural scene, helping to secure innovative projects and existing structures in the long term.
The Berlin Mondiale project, initiated by the Council for the Arts in cooperation with the Kulturnetzwerk Neukölln e.V., is committed to the cultural participation of refugees. Partnerships between cultural institutions and refugee shelters create spaces for artistic exchange and joint creative work. Berlin Mondiale makes it possible to actively experience cultural diversity and to anchor new perspectives in Berlin’s cultural landscape.
Diversity Arts Culture was launched in response to calls for greater diversity in the cultural sector. The initiative offers advice and support to cultural institutions to break down barriers and promote diversity in arts and culture. It advocates structural changes that facilitate access for underrepresented groups and ensure a fairer distribution of resources.
• Draussenstadt & Project Fund Urban Practice
The Council for the Arts strengthens artsand culture in public spaces through the ‘Draussenstadt’ programme and the ‘Projektfonds Urbane Praxis’ (Urban Practice Project Fund). During the coronavirus pandemic, ‘Draussenstadt’ enabled cultural workers to organise open-air events, performances and artistic interventions despite the restrictions imposed by the pandemic.. The Urban Practice Project Fund has consolidated and developed this idea. The fund supports artistic projects that see urban space as a collaborative space ffor shaping and making culture accessible to all. Both programmes help to establish new forms of cultural participation in urban areas and to develop the city as a creative living space.
In the future:
In the coming years, the Council for the Arts will continue to promote cultural diversity and education by advocating for a fairer distribution of resources and the removal of structural barriers. It will also strengthen the arts community by promoting fair working conditions for cultural workers and developing new funding tools for independent artists. A keyl concern remains a sustainable property policy: the council will work to ensure that cultural spaces are secured in the long term and that new spaces for artistic work are created.
The Council is particularly critical of the cuts to Berlin’s 2025 cultural budget that have been decided since December 2024, as well as the planned further savings in the 2026/2027 double budget. These not only threaten existing cultural institutions, but in particular the independent scene, which contributes significantly to the city’s cultural diversity and innovative strength. They are also a direct attack on underrepresented and marginalised voices in society. The Council for the Arts will strongly oppose these austerity measures, seek political dialogue and publicly highlight the importance of a strong, diverse and well-funded cultural landscape for Berlin.
Furthermore, the council demands a transparent and needs-based distribution of the City Tax. The revenues from this tax must be channelled into innovative and public-oriented cultural projects in order to mitigate the threat of financial gaps in cultural funding. The council will work to ensure that the distribution of these funds is made more open and democratic so that they contribute to securing Berlin’s cultural diversity in the long term.